Germany's state asset authority has approved a 145m euro (£98m; $184m) claim against retailer Karstadtquelle in a row over Nazi-era property theft. Shares in Karstadtquelle fell by more than 2% after the ruling in favour of the Jewish Claims Conference (JCC). The JCC is acting on behalf of the Wertheim family, who were forced to sell their chain of department stores and flee to the US by the Nazis. The site under dispute was gained by Karstadtquelle in the 1990s. The dispute centres on the Lenne-Dreieck site in central Berlin, which was taken from the Wertheim business by the Nazis as part of an "aryanisation" programme. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk

A US businessman has been charged with offering broadcasts of Hezbollah's al-Manar satellite television station to customers in the New York-area. Javed Iqbal, originally from Pakistan, is accused by prosecutors of doing business with a terrorist entity. The Hezbollah Shia militia has been involved in a month-long conflict with Israeli forces in Lebanon and is seen as a terrorist group by the US. Mr Iqbal's lawyers say his arrest violates his right to free speech. "It's like the government of Iran saying we are going to ban the New York Times because we think of it as a terrorist outfit, or China saying we will ban CNN," a spokesman for the law firm representing Mr Iqbal told the Reuters news agency. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5284980.stm

European Union governments pledged between 6,500 and 7,000 soldiers for the Lebanon peacekeeping force, boosting United Nations efforts to police the cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah. Italy will dispatch 3,000 troops, France 2,000 and Spain 1,000, with smaller countries making up the rest. The UN is pressing the EU to provide half of a 15,000-strong force to start deploying in southern Lebanon by early September. ``The European force will be the spinal column,'' of the expanded UN force, French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said in Brussels after EU foreign ministers set the numbers. France ``asked for and obtained guarantees on the rules of engagement, guarantees on security and on the chain of command.'' The EU commitment heads off a potential clash with U.S. President George W. Bush, who yesterday called on Europe to put military force behind the economic muscle that it flexes in the Middle East. ...http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=arbuURvVyUMA&refer=worldwide_news

Russia rejected on Friday any talk for now of sanctions against Iran and France warned against conflict with Tehran, raising doubts whether it will face swift penalties for not halting nuclear work by an August 31 deadline. Responding to an offer of economic incentives to stop enriching uranium, Iran hinted to six world powers on Tuesday it could rein in its program as a result of talks to implement the package -- but not as a precondition as they demand.The reply seemed tailored to crack the brittle united front of four Western powers and Russia and China who agreed to the U.N. deadline. The West sees Iran's nuclear drive as a threat to peace. Russia and China are unconvinced."I know of no instances in world practice and previous experience in which sanctions have achieved their aim and proved effective," Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov told reporters during a trip to Russia's far east....http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060825/ts_nm/nuclear_iran_dc

French President Jacques Chirac has said sending 15,000 peacekeeping troops to southern Lebanon is "excessive". He was speaking ahead of Brussels talks on the Lebanon peace force, which France will lead, between EU ministers and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. At that meeting French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said EU nations have offered to send a minimum of 6,500 to 7,000 ground troops to Lebanon. The force was authorised as part of the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. Speaking in Brussels, Mr Annan said that the plan would only work if the enlarged UN force, called Unifil 2, was "strong, credible and robust". Mr Annan added that the first troops would deploy within days, not weeks....http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5284284.stm

Nigerian soldiers have burnt hundreds of slum houses near where a soldier was killed during the kidnapping of foreign oil workers, residents say. Residents in the city of Port Harcourt say the troops became angry when they learned one of their colleagues had been killed in a shootout. Hundreds fled with their belongings as the fire spread through the slum area. The army has denied responsibility. The military was sent to the oil-rich Niger Delta to arrest militants. At least three foreigners were abducted by gunmen from a bar close to the offices of a subsidiary of the Italian oil company, Eni, on Thursday night, near where the slums were burnt. During the kidnapping, a soldier protecting the workers was shot and killed. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5285556.stm